TAYLOR CANFIELD WINS MONSOON CUP
Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia (December 8, 2012) - Wildcard entry Taylor
Canfield from the US Virgin Islands has won the most coveted event on the
Alpari World Match Racing Tour, the Monsoon Cup, after defeating Kiwi Phil
Robertson in a dramatic, sudden death final.

Canfield, skipper of USone, who also won the penultimate Tour event, the
Argo Group Gold Cup, said: "This win is the best we have achieved in our
careers so far and the guys I'm sailing with, Hayden Goodrick, Mike Rehe,
Dan Morris and Rob Dawson did a fantastic job here today. We're the second
US Virgin Islanders to win this after Peter Holmberg in 2006. This is a
great way to finish the season and sets the bar for next year."

Asked if he hopes for a Tour Card in 2013, he added: "We definitely want a
Tour Card and if this doesn't prove [what we can do] I don't know what
does. Whatever happens, we'll put in a strong effort next year."

Ian Williams, who claimed his record-equalling fourth ISAF Match Racing
World Championship in the Quarter Final, had to settle for third place
after defeating Peter Gilmour in the Petit Final. An emotional Peter
Gilmour, who now bows out of professional match racing, said: "We really
had a good time out here. It was another wonderful event."

Sailed in the Foundation 36, the Monsoon Cup offers the highest prize purse
on the Tour, MYR 1.475 million (approx USD 475,000), with the winner set to
earn MYR 310,000 (approx USD 100,000). Racing is available to watch online
at http://www.wmrt.com/live.html -- Full story: http://tinyurl.com/a58knah

STRAIGHT LINE SPEED RACE CONTINUES
(December 9, 2012; Day 30) - British Vendee Globe skipper Alex Thomson
continues to mount a serious challenge for third place among the fleet
leaders as the straight line speed race continues east towards the
Amsterdam ice security gate. In a building breeze today Thomson has been
increasingly able to retain the high average speeds that have long been his
trademark, twice earning him 24-hour world speed records. Despite being
armed with an older generation design, Hugo Boss' speed king Thomson has
been so far been the fastest in the fleet though the second half of Sunday.

Over the 750 miles which remain to the third security gate of the course it
is unlikely that any new speed records will be set, but the skipper of the
silver hulled Farr design went head to head for third today with none other
than Virbac-Paprec 3's Jean-Pierre Dick, who by setting a mark of 502.53
miles on 1st December, has now twice surpassed 24 hour distance records
previously held by Thomson.

Hugo Boss rose from fifth to third today, initially passing a frustrated
Bernard Stamm who had spent a period slowed on board his powerful Cheminées
Poujoulat to deal with a pressing number of small maintenance issues,
including replacing broken battens in his mainsail.
But the Swiss skipper, who like Thomson has yet to finish a Vendée Globe,
was back up close to maximum speed during the afternoon making 20kts. --
Full story: http://tinyurl.com/a4htmhq

BACKGROUND: Twenty skippers began the Vendee Globe, a solo, non-stop around
the world race in the IMOCA Open 60 class. Starting in Les Sables d'Olonne,
France on November 10, the west to east course passes the three major capes
of Good Hope, Leeuwin and the Horn before returning to Les Sables d'Olonne.
Michel Desjoyeaux (FRA) set the course record of 84 days in the 2008-9
edition. -- http://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/

DECK THE HALLS
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LUCAS TAKES FIRST AT AUDI MELGES 20 WINTER SERIES EVENT 1
Miami, FL (December 9, 2012) - Day three of the 2013 Audi Melges 20 Miami
Winter Series hosted by the Coconut Grove Sailing Club remained consistent
with light air conditions prevailing for the final day of racing for Event
No. 1 in the series and resulting in no races.

Although the weather conditions were not perfect for sailing, the teams
raced for two days and completed four races. Competition was intense for
the forty-two boats in attendance, enjoying numerous lead changes and
struggling with the challenging light air conditions.

Congratulations are in order for Russell Lucas and crew of Harry Melges III
and Federico Michetti on Shimmer who took home the coveted first place
trophy for the event.

The Eagan family (Marcus, Marc and Andrew) on Cajun Underwriting finished
with a well-deserved and highly respected second place trophy. They also
were named top Corinthian. John Kilroy on Samba Pa Ti rounds out the top
rankings clinching third.

The International Audi Melges 20 Class Association (IAM20CA) and Coconut
Grove Sailing Club will host Event No. 2 of the Audi Melges 20 Miami Winter
Series February 9-11, 2013. -- Full story: http://tinyurl.com/anwba52

USA'S BARKOW WINS 5TH ANNUAL CARLOS AGUILAR
St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands (December 9, 2012) - USA's Sally Barkow
played the 'comeback kid' by defeating USA's Dave Perry 3-0 in the Finals
at the 5th Carlos Aguilar Match Race (CAMR), presented by Ulysse
Nardin/Trident Jewels & Time. Barkow, who has raced this regatta four
times, took second last year after a narrow defeat by Finland's Staphan
Lindberg. The sorrow of that defeat made this year's win for Barkow and her
crew Annie Lush, Alana O'Reilly, Erik Shampain and Maggie Shea all the
sweeter.

"We worked hard as a team in these last few days and it paid off," says
Barkow, who is ranked 6th in the Women's and 31st in the Open match race
ranking's divisions as of December 5, 2012.

A rainsquall blowing across the Charlotte Amalie harbor just minutes before
the start of the Finals left light and shifty conditions in its wake. This
didn't deter Barkow who handily won the first two matches against Perry.

In what proved the final match of the Finals, Barkow lead at the start and
stretched her advantage to 8 boat lengths by the windward mark. She
lengthened her frontrunner position into a commanding 10 to 12 boat lengths
by the finish even though her team battled through a kink in the spinnaker
that cost them a few seconds in boat speed in the last downwind run.

"It was so shifty," says Barkow. "It was easy to get it either so right or
so wrong."

This match-up of teams in the Finals was an interesting one as Perry, who
is the author of Understanding the Racing Rules of Sailing 2009-2012, has
served as Barkow's match racing coach.

"For me it was a win-win," says Perry of his team's second place finish and
his student's first. "Sally's team is really good and they have evolved
their game well. I was impatient. I had some advantages and gave them away.
This either put me behind or put me further behind and Sally took advantage
of that."

Two past America's Cup skippers went head-to-head in the Petite Finals.
Ultimately, USVI's Peter Holmberg won 2-1 over USA's Dave Dellenbaugh.
Thus, Holmberg finished third and Dellenbaugh fourth in the final
standings. -- Full story: http://www.carlosmatchrace.com

OMANI DOUBLE FOR 2012 EXTREME SAILING PODIUM PLACES
Rio, Brazil (December 9, 2012) - The most closely contested finish ever in
the six-year history of the Extreme Sailing Series, today saw The Wave,
Muscat clinch the final Act victory in Rio de Janeiro by the smallest of
margins, just 0.2 points ahead of the French Groupe Edmond de Rothschild.

Coming into the Act, The Wave, Muscat was the hot favorite to win the
Series. With three Act wins already under their belts they just had to play
it safe and finish sixth or above which they did. The battle was for second
place and in true Extreme Sailing Series style it came down to the final
double points race.

With only one point between each of the first 3 teams, it would not be
clear until the final minute who would get the result they sought - one
minute, the Austrian Red Bull Sailing Team led, the next Groupe Edmond de
Rothschild and in a blink it could be an Omani boat. In the end it was
Pierre Pennec who finished the regatta on a high, winning the final race
which bringing his tally for the Act up to an impressive 10 race wins,
securing his French team second place in Rio and third place in the 2012
championship.

In his first year on the Series, Morgan Larson (USA) and his Oman Air team
have proved themselves a force to be reckoned with, with Act wins in
Muscat, Oman and Cardiff UK. A fifth place in the final race today was
enough for the Omani team to finish third in Rio and second place on the
overall leaderboard, making it an Omani double for 2012.

"It was a challenging day, and as I said to the guys, it is a testament to
the characters of the people on the boat that they're all fighters and they
kept fighting even when things didn't go our way," said Larson. "In the end
we are really pleased. We have a bright future."

The sixth year of the Extreme Sailing Series closes after 209 races staged
across 7 venues and 11 months of global touring this year. The 2013 Series
begins in Muscat, Oman on the 5th March with 8 teams (6 returning and 2
new) set to fight for ultimate victory. -- Full story:
http://tinyurl.com/a56fj9t

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SAILING SHORTS
* Auckland, New Zealand (December 7, 2012) - With a limit of only 30 days
of sailing until February 1st allowed in the AC 34 rules and the clock
abruptly ticking down the days left for Emirates Team NZ on the water, it
was time to push the AC72 further than it has been pushed so far. For Team
NZ, day 28 just happened to coincide with one of the most destructive days
of weather Auckland has seen in some time, giving them an opportunity to
really put their AC 72 through its paces. Said Grant Dalton, CEO ETNZ,
"It's the hardest we've ever pushed it.s" -- Read on:
http://tinyurl.com/afs5uod

* Melbourne, Australia, December 8, 2012 - At the ISAF Sailing World Cup
Melbourne, in the Men's 470 fleet, capitalizing on a great week, it was Mat
Belcher and Will Ryan (AUS) who sealed victory and their gold medal with an
emphatic display to increase their lead at every mark rounding. Brendan
Casey (AUS) cleaning up the course in the Finn, while Tom Burton (AUS)
collected Gold in the Laser. Florian Gruber (GER) and Ariane Imbert (FRA)
each won gold in Kiteboarding. -- Full story:
http://www.sailing.org/news/33686.php

* On Tuesday, December 11 at 6:30pm, at the Manhattan Sailing Club's
floating clubhouse, all boating enthusiasts are invited to meet one of the
world's greatest ocean racers Giovanni Soldini. He has won the
single-handed Round the World Race as well as many trans-Atlantic and other
major events and is currently preparing to challenge the New York to San
Francisco sailing record on his boat Maserati. Admission is free but RSVP
is required because of limited space. -- Info at:
http://tinyurl.com/acrxpjx

* The International Rolex Regatta, one of the world's greatest yacht races,
will be sailed March 22nd - 24th, 2013. The Regatta is scheduled a week
earlier this year to accommodate some holistic changes on the Spring
Caribbean regatta schedule. Hosted by the St. Thomas Yacht Club, the
International Rolex Regatta will celebrate its 40th year in 2013 with Rolex
a partner since the very beginning. -- Read on:
http://www.rolexcupregatta.com/index2.php

* Miami, FL (December 9, 2012) - The 2012-13 Etchells Jaguar Cup Mid
Winters Series kicked off this weekend with the Piana Cup (Dec. 8-9). "The
Jag", as it has come to be known, is a series of four regattas between
December and March. Hosted by Biscayne Bay Yacht Club, fifty-two Etchells
hit the start line Saturday for temps in the mid 70's, lots of sun but
light winds. The fleet rolled through three races, with winds on Sunday
failing to offer any racing. Winning the Piana Cup was La Tormenta,
skippered by Flipper Wehrheim with his crew of Kurt Oetking and Brad
Boston. -- Full report: http://tinyurl.com/aru6kjd

* The Orange Bowl International Youth Regatta, which attracts an
international roster of the world's best young sailors, ages 8-18, comes to
Miami from December 27th- 30th. This year over 600 sailors from all over
the world - England, Italy, France, Mexico, Peru and Curacao - will invade
the shores of Biscayne Bay, competing in 3 different classes: Optimists
(Optis), Lasers and 420s. -- Read on: http://tinyurl.com/aaq55qb

PRO BONO
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product and service updates. For free. As a bonus, each week the
Scuttlebutt newsletter includes some of the recent updates. Are you in the
marine industry? Post your updates in the Industry News section of the
Forum.

EIGHT BELLS
Thomas Gilchrist Allen III, 81, of Amherst, N.Y., husband of 56 years to
Anne Smither Allen, passed away on December 6, 2012 in Amherst. An
entrepreneur, boat builder, champion sailor and a passionate lover of the
Buffalo Canoe Club and his summer home in Bay Beach, Ontario, Tom will be
remembered for his uncanny ability to build and sail boats.

He attended the Nichols School in Buffalo. He was a member of the Sigma Chi
Fraternity at Albion College and graduated in 1953, followed by two years
in the Navy where he was a member of the swimming team. In 1961 he founded
the Allen Boat Company in Buffalo, N.Y. where he built sailboats, but most
notably, the Lightning class sailboat. Initially, his boats were built of
wood but over time their construction switched to fiberglass. He became the
largest manufacturer of the Lightning class boat in the world. At the time
of his passing Tom was still affiliated with the Allen Boat Company, which
is now run by his son, Thomas Allen.

Tom's sailing record is legendary. Over the span of his life he has won
four Lightning World Championships, eight North American Lightning
Championships, a Flying Dutchman North American Championship, the Albacore
Nationals, a gold and silver medal in the Pan American Games, and was an
alternate member of the U.S. Olympic Team in the Flying Dutchman class for
the 1968 Olympics in Mexico. He has won so many races that it is difficult
to portray the extent of his success.

GUEST COMMENTARY
Scuttlebutt strongly encourages feedback from the Scuttlebutt community.
Either submit comments by email or post them on the Forum. Submitted
comments chosen to be published in the newsletter may be limited to 250
words. Authors may have one published submission per subject, and should
save their bashing and personal attacks for elsewhere.

* From George W. Carmany III:
A great post from Bruce Kirby regarding the famous Gretel win in '62 (SB
3734). I was there as well. The other part of the story is that it was not
just Columbia's spinnaker at work. Gretel wore a Hood main that day which
came with Vim when she was purchased by Frank Packer as a trial horse for
Gretel. That main was treasured in Australia because it was grandfathered
and at one point was recognized on the boom of Southern Cross while
trialing in Perth in 1973. This all resulted in the introduction of "made
in country" requirements for subsequent matches.

* From Ned Hall:
Bruce Kirby refers to "Regarding the history report in Scuttlebutt 3734,"
but he must have meant another one. Any chance I could see that one because
I must have missed some history you or someone else referred to. I was on
the foredeck on Weatherly in that race in 1962.

* From Charles J. Bertrand:
Lost: Mount Gay Red Hat, Key West, 1998

I live in Sea Bright, NJ. Similar to thousands, I've lost my boat, car, and
home. Almost as important, I lost my red hat during the storm. If found,
please return. -- Read on: http://tinyurl.com/a93xbuu

* From Mark Weinheimer:
I can't remember who put forth the idea, but it may merit reiteration...run
a W/L fun race wherein the entire fleet turns downwind wherever they are on
the course when the first place boat rounds the windward mark. Repeat at
the leeward mark. The trick is to have the course long enough for the fleet
to remix with each rounding - challenging for the top of the fleet as they
have to make their way back through the crowd and it gives the back markers
a turn at the front defending. Prizes could be awarded for the boat with
the most mark roundings, the most boats passed...and a sandbag award for
the most egregious trophy hunter.

CURMUDGEON'S OBSERVATION
When you need to knock on wood is when you realize that the world is
composed of vinyl, naugahyde and aluminum.